New Children's Book Picks November 2022 - UK Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Fleur Hitchcock - Murder at Snowfall - Published by Nosy Crow (3 Nov. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1839945908 - Paperback - Reading Age: 8+

A gripping thriller for readers who like danger and mystery and chills and spills from the comfort of their sofas... Unputdownable.

When Lucas and Ruby find an abandoned trunk covered in snow, Lucas says there's bound to be a body inside. Ruby laughs but what if he's right? Nervously she starts to open it, and immediately wishes she hadn't. From that moment on, they're drawn into a thrilling mystery, one that they have to solve before the falling snow smothers all trace of wrongdoing...

Katharine Orton - Mountainfell - Published by  Walker Books (3 Nov. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1529503296 - Paperback - Reading Age: 9

There is nothing more dangerous than magic... 
Eleven-year-old Erskin is used to danger; she lives in the shadow of Mountainfell, a place of wild creatures and dangerous magic. When the most powerful and deadly creature of all – the fearsome cloud dragon – snatches Erskin’s sister away, Erskin must face her greatest fear and journey onto the mountain to bring her back. A terrible power is stirring, and it is up to Erskin to save both her family and her home.

Allison Rushby - The Ghost Locket - Published by Walker Books (3 Nov. 2022) -ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1529505993 - Paperback - Reading Age: 8+

A classic Christmas ghost story set in a haunted historic house - for fans of Emma Carroll and Lucy Strange.

It's Christmas, and eleven-year-old Lolli must return to London and break a promise she made to herself ― to never again step foot in the Victorian historic house in Spitalfields managed by her family.

There, Lolli must face up to what she saw in the house several years ago and make things right for two ghosts - one friendly and one decidedly not - opening her guarded heart to people in both the living and twilight worlds.

Alex Bell (Author), Tomislav Tomic (Illustrator)  - Explorers at Stardust City -  Faber & Faber  (3 Nov. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0571359752 - Paperback - Reading Age: 8+

Directly below was a sight none of them had ever seen before - a kind of spiral, with glowing ruby-red lights that curved outwards like tentacles.In the middle was a dark circle, inky black. It had the look of a really, really deep well.

Ursula and her friends are in a race against time. The Collector has taken Stella captive, and is hungrily snatching up all the beautiful places of the world in her snow globe prisons. She needs to be stopped, but first they must find her.

To aid them in their quest, the explorers seek help from new allies, including a Pirate Queen, with a ghost ship that can defy time and space, and then take to the skies in a galaxy fairy rocket. But their journey is fraught with danger, as the future of the planet hangs in the balance.

Escape into a sensational world filled with space moles, sea goblins and giant sharks, all covered with a sprinkling of moon dust!

The Best Children's Book Picks October 2022 - US Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Jasmine Warga - A Rover's Story - Published by Balzer + Bray (October 4, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063113923 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

The One and Only Ivan meets The Wild Robot in this unique and deeply moving middle-grade novel about the journey of a fictional Mars rover, from the Newbery Honor-winning author of Other Words for Home. New York Times bestseller!

Meet Resilience, a Mars rover determined to live up to his name.

Res was built to explore Mars. He was not built to have human emotions. But as he learns new things from the NASA scientists who assemble him, he begins to develop human-like feelings. Maybe there’s a problem with his programming….

Human emotions or not, launch day comes, and Res blasts off to Mars, accompanied by a friendly drone helicopter named Fly. But Res quickly discovers that Mars is a dangerous place filled with dust storms and giant cliffs. As he navigates Mars’s difficult landscape, Res is tested in ways that go beyond space exploration. 

As millions of people back on Earth follow his progress, will Res have the determination, courage—and resilience—to succeed… and survive?  

Andrea Rogers (Author), Jeff Edwards (Illustrator) - Man Made Monsters - Published by ‎Levine Querido (October 4, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1646141791 - Hardback - Age: 12+ 

Tsalagi should never have to live on human blood, but sometimes things just happen to sixteen-year-old girls. 

Making her YA debut, Cherokee writer Andrea L. Rogers takes her place as one of the most striking voices of the horror renaissance that has swept the last decade.

Horror fans will get their thrills in this collection – from werewolves to vampires to zombies – all the time-worn horror baddies are there. But so are predators of a distinctly American variety – the horrors of empire, of intimate partner violence, of dispossession. And so to the monsters of Rogers’ imagination, that draw upon long-told Cherokee stories – of Deer Woman, fantastical sea creatures, and more.

Following one extended Cherokee family across the centuries, from the tribe’s homelands in Georgia in the 1830s to World War I, the Vietnam War, our own present, and well into the future, each story delivers a slice of a particular time period that will leave readers longing for more.

Alongside each story, Cherokee artist and language technologist Jeff Edwards delivers haunting illustrations that incorporate Cherokee syllabary.

But don’t just take it from us – award-winning writer of The Only Good Indians and MongrelsStephen Graham Jones says that "Andrea Rogers writes like the house is on fire and her words are the only thing that can put it out."

Man Made Monsters is a masterful, heartfelt, haunting collection ripe for crossover appeal – just don’t blame us if you start hearing things that go bump in the night.

Mari Mancusi - New Dragon City - Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (October 4, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0316376686 - Hardback - Age: 8

Set off on a high-stakes, action-packed adventure in this story about friendship, survival, and fighting for ones you love, perfect for fans of Wings of Fire and How to Train Your Dragon. 

No one predicted the dragon apocalypse. The dragons came suddenly and decimated the world as we knew it, including New York City. Now, three years later, Noah, his hardcore survivalist father, and a ragtag group of survivors are barely scraping by in this new reality. Kids scavenge not only for materials in abandoned homes but also for leftover books at the library. Adults spend their time establishing a make-shift society and defending their shelter... with any means available. At least for a few months, the dragons are hibernating until it’s no longer safe aboveground.

Noah has seen the damage these creatures can do firsthand. When it comes to dragons: It's kill or be killed. But a chance encounter between Noah and a young dragon forces him to question everything he thought he knew. With rumors spreading that there’s a group of survivors living in harmony with dragons instead of hiding underground, Noah teams up with his fire-breathing ally to find out if peace between humans and dragons is really possible. But the division runs deeper than scales versus skin because trying to follow his heart might just cost Noah his family too. If Noah and his father can’t see eye to eye, can he really get humans and dragons too?

‎ 

Natalie Lund - The Wolves Are Watching - Viking Books for Young Readers (October 4, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593351093 - Hardback - Age: 7+ 

A fresh, compelling, and eerie exploration of small-town living, stolen children, and wolves that watch in the woods.

The night little Madison disappears from her crib, Luce sees a pair of eyes--two points of gold deep in the forest behind her house--and feels certain they belong to a wolf. Her town, Picnic, Illinois, is the kind of place where everyone knows one another and no one locks their doors. It’s not the kind of place where a toddler goes missing without a trace, where wolves lurk in the shadows.
 
In town, people are quick to blame Madison’s mom. But when Luce’s English teacher shares an original script about the disappearance of another little girl in Picnic back in 1870, Luce begins to notice similarities that she can’t ignore. Certain that something deeper is going on, Luce tracks the wolf she saw into the woods and uncovers the truth about her town: magical animal-women, who have remained hidden in shadows for centuries, have taken her cousin for their own purposes--and they have no intention of bringing her back. 
 
A chilling mystery that weaves elements of magical realism, drama, and folklore into a story of one teen’s bravery as she confronts her town’s past and tries to save the future.

New Children's Book Picks October 2022 - UK Post - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Natasha Hastings (Author), Alex T. Smith (Illustrator) - The Miraculous Sweetmakers: Frost Fair - Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books (27 Oct. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0008496050 - Hardback - Age: 9+ 

 An amazing and captivating, curl-up-on-the-sofa debut about a magical frost fair and the lasting power of friendship.

It’s a cold winter during the Great Frost of 1683. Thomasina and Anne are the best of friends, one running her father’s sweet shop and the other the apprentice at the family apothecary – together they sell their goods on the frozen River Thames. When a family tragedy turns Thomasina’s world upside down, she is drawn to a mysterious conjuror and the enchanted frost fair.

But soon the world of Father Winter threatens to claim everything she holds dear. Will they be able to solve the magical mysteries that surround them . . . ?

Lucy Hope - Wren - Published by Nosy Crow (6 Oct. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1839947230 - Paperback - Age; 8+ 

A dark, gothic adventure set on the island of Anglesey in North Wales and featuring a very fantastical beast…

Wren lives in an ancient castle in the mountains near the sea. The wind whistles through it and the walls sing to her. Wren is busy inventing things, and her father is busy disapproving.

But the castle contains a mystery and as Wren is drawn further into it, she realises the answer lies in the very foundations of her home, foundations that are being shaken to their core…

The next fantastic novel from Lucy Hope, author of Fledgling!

M. G Leonard & Sam Sedgman - The Arctic Railway Assassin (Adventure on Trains 6) Published by Macmillan Children's Books (13 Oct. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1529072761 - Paperback - Age: 7+ - Illustrated by Elisa Paganelli 

The bestselling, prize-winning Adventures on Trains series embarks on a thrilling sixth adventure as Harrison Beck and Uncle Nat climb aboard the night train to Narvik, travelling to the Arctic Circle to see the northern lights for Christmas.

But as their train leaves Stockholm, Hal and Uncle Nat realize they’re being followed by a sinister figure, and Hal’s powers of observation are tested when Uncle Nat’s past comes back to haunt him. Journeying into the never-ending night of the arctic winter, our railway detectives must outsmart an assassin in their most chilling adventure yet, in which nothing is as it seems.

The Arctic Railway Assassin can be read as a stand-alone novel, or enjoyed as part of the award-winning Adventures on Trains series written by M. G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman. Join Hal and Uncle Nat on more stops in this thrilling series with: Murder on the Safari Star, Danger at Dead Man's Pass and Sabotage on the Solar Express.

SF Said (Author), Dave McKean (Illustrator) - Published by David Fickling Books (6 Oct. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1788452830 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

There are three doors that I may show you. You will find a different kind of power behind each one ...' 

 Adam has found something incredible in a rubbish dump in London. A mysterious, mythical, magical animal. A TYGER.

 And the tyger is in danger.

 Adam and his friend Zadie are determined to help, but it isn't just the tyger's life at stake. Their whole world is on the verge of destruction. Can they learn to use their powers before it's too late?

Jodie Garnish - The Spectaculars - Book Review - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Are you looking for your next favourite read? What about a new series involving magical settings and a trip on a flying canoe? If so, then look no further than the debut book by Jodie Garnish. The Spectaculars will be published in magnificent hardback glory with a brilliant book cover and internal illustrations by Nathan Collins. I can hear you ask when can I get my hands on this book? Well, it will fly into bookshops across the fantasy world on the 29th September 2022 (TODAY!) and has been published by the good people at Usborne Publishing. 

After reading the book synopsis, I thought the story sounded rather wonderful. To be absolutely honest, it really is a theatrical delight that I (and I'm sure you will also) fall in love with. It's a far-flung fantasy story inspired by the author's love for drama and theatre. The plot is brimming with charm and magical stardust as the setting fully immerses the reader. Welcome to the WONDRIA - a place full of magical performers with gifted special powers. However, lurking behind every curtain lies nightmares, danger, peril, and a lot of superstition. 

You will need to keep your wits about you as you join Harper, Trick and Thief in a fast-paced adventure that will elevate you off your feet. The plot is full of marvellous mayhem and unexpected explosions. It's an epic and enchanting zip wire extravaganza full of mystery as the characters look to save their travelling theatre and boarding school from closing for good. The characters are larger than life as they face rivalry, villains, scrapes, and near misses that pull you through epic scenes in a surreal and dramatic way. The story is full of surprises which are all pieced together like a jigsaw to keep the readers both interested and entertained. The author has left a lot of unanswered questions which allows the next installment to be introduced and continue seamlessly; this is going to be a fantastic new series. 

It was a wonder and a delight to read this book; it shines brighter than the North Star.  One of the best debut children's books that I have read this year.  May you be cursed with the stings of a thousand bees and may your toes be chewed off by wolves! Keep this in mind as you decide whether to embark on this new journey. But be warned that if you don't then you'll miss out on the best SPECTACULAR adventure in town. 

The Best Children's US Book Picks September 2022 - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Lindsay Currie - The Girl in White - Published by ‎Sourcebooks Young Readers (September 6, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1728236544 - Hardback - Age: 8+

Mallory hasn't quite adapted to life in her new town of Eastport yet. Maybe it's because everyone is obsessed with keeping the town's reputation as the most cursed town in the US.

And thanks to the nightmares she's had since arriving, Mallory hardly sleeps. Combined with the unsettling sensation of being watched, she's quickly becoming convinced there's more to her town. Something darker.

When Mallory has a terrifying encounter with the same old woman from her dreams, she knows she has to do something―but what? With Eastport gearing up to celebrate the anniversary of their first recorded legend Mallory is forced to investigate the one legend she's always secretly been afraid of . . . Sweet Molly.

Colin Meloy - The Stars Did Wander Darkling - Published by ‎ Balzer + Bray (September 13, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063015517 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

A suspenseful and atmospheric horror set in 1980s Oregon, perfect for fans of Stranger Things, Neil Gaiman, and Margaret Peterson Haddix, from New York Times bestselling author and the Decemberists’ lead singer/songwriter, Colin Meloy.

Maybe Archie Coomes has been watching too many horror movies.

All of a sudden, the most ordinary things have taken on a sinister edge: a penny on a doormat. An odd man in a brown suit under a streetlamp. The persistent sound of an ax chopping in the middle of the night.

He keeps telling himself that this is Seaham, a sleepy seaside town where nothing ever happens. Or at least nothing did, until his dad’s construction company opened up the cliff beneath the old—some say cursed—Langdon place.

Soon, though, he and his friends can’t deny it: more and more of the adults in town are acting strangely. An ancient, long-buried evil has been unleashed upon the community, and it’s up to the kids to stop it before it’s too late. . . .

Mary Downing Hahn - What We Saw: A Thriller - Published by Clarion Books (September 6, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0358414414 - Hardback - Age: 8+

A chilling murder mystery lies at the heart of this page-turning thriller about a missing teacher, small-town secrets, and turbulent tween friendships from the master of middle-grade horror Mary Downing Hahn.

When best friends Abbi and Skylar witness a clandestine meeting between a mysterious woman and someone in a dark van, they're thrilled. Finally, a mystery to spice up the summer!

Who could these people be? Why are they meeting? Are they spies? Criminals? The two girls are determined to find out. But then a local woman goes missing and is found dead in the woods. And Abbi and Skylar realize that their detective work could hold the keys to solving her murder. Suddenly, sleuthing isn't so fun anymore.

As tensions rise and their friendship frays, the girls find themselves in increasing danger, and must choose between keeping a secret or exposing a life-altering truth.

Kalyn Josephson - Ravefall - Published by Delacorte Press (September 6, 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593483589 - Hardback - Age: 9+ 

• One magical inn, two kids with supernatural powers, and an ancient Celtic creature trying to destroy their world by Halloween night...
   
  Halloweentown meets Supernatural in this spooky middle-grade series from the acclaimed author of the Storm Crow duology!
  
  Thirteen-year-old Annabella Ballinkay has never been normal, even by her psychic family’s standards. Every generation uses their abilities to help run the Ravenfall Inn, a sprawling, magical B&B at the crossroads of the human world and the Otherworld. But it’s hard to contribute when your only power is foreseeing death.
   
  So when fourteen-year-old Colin Pierce arrives at Ravenfall searching for his missing older brother and the supernatural creature who killed their parents, Anna jumps at the chance to help. But the mysteries tied to Colin go much deeper than either of them expects. . . .
   
  As the two team up to find answers, they unearth Colin’s family’s secret past and discover that Colin has powers beyond his imagination. And now the supernatural creature, one with eerie origins in Celtic mythology, is coming after him. If Anna and Colin can’t stop the creature by Halloween night, the veil to the Otherworld could be ripped open—which would spell destruction for their world as they know it.

Kate Gilby Smith - Olive Jones and the Memory Thief - Author Interview (Q&A) - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books #36

Hello Everybody! It's time to introduce you to our next author interview with Kate Gilby Smith. The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody is her first book to be published by Orion Children's Books whilst Olive Jones and the Memory Thief is her latest book. The author was born on the island of Guernsey which I'm sure will be a backdrop of huge inspiration. From fiction to non-fiction, we travel beyond books to find out more about the author and who they would travel back in time to meet. 

 1. Your second book is entitled Olive Jones and the Memory Thief and is due to be published in June 2022 by Orion Children's. When and where did you get the first idea for this book?

The idea for Olive Jones and the Memory Thief came from a ‘what if’ question that popped into my head one day. What if one day in the future we could record our memories? I kept thinking about this question and in particular about whose memories I would most like to watch if I could. I started to think about how I’d love to watch some of my grandparents’ memories, to get to know them better than I was able to when they were alive. At the same time I was thinking about my grandad who I saw lots of when I was growing up but had always been quite mysterious to me. I developed a bit of a theory about why he was so mysterious despite living so close – he was secretly a spy. That gave me the idea for a grandparent character – called Grandma Sylvie – who is secretly a spy, and a protagonist who learns about their grandparent’s life through the memories they leave behind when they pass away. That was the start of the idea, though I had no clue where it would take me from there!

2. How do you go about planning and plotting a book? Do you have any tips to share with other writers looking to get their stories published? 

After having the initial idea, I had to ask myself and answer loads more questions. What technology does Grandma Sylvie use to record her memories? How does it work? Why does she do it? What’s the protagonist of my story like? What’s her relationship with Grandma Sylvie like? And many more questions like that. From the beginning I had an image in my head of the main character, Olive, staring through her window at her grandma’s house across the road and wishing that she knew more about her. So I knew that’s where I wanted to start. Then I went about plotting the book in chunks of about three chapters at a time, not knowing where I was going to end up. It took me a really long time to work out what I wanted to happen in the book after Olive receives her grandma’s memories. In fact, I had to completely rewrite the second half of the book as I wasn’t happy with the plot. It was hard to do that, but I’m so glad I did.

As for tips, I would encourage writers to keep going even when the book feels like the most terrible story anyone has ever written. I would also encourage them to share their writing with a trusted friend of a family member and to listen carefully to their feedback. And make sure your first three chapters really hook your reader because that’s the bit literary agents tend to read before requesting the full manuscript.

3. You also work as a publicist at a London publisher of science, philosophy and history; are there any elements of this particular job that help you when writing for children? 

Yes definitely! As a publicist for non-fiction books I’m always around interesting, new and exciting ideas which is hugely inspiring, especially as I like writing books with sci-fi and futuristic themes. 

4. Did any of the books you read as a child reflect the Guernsey surroundings/island you were brought up on? Are you able to reflect aspects of the island into your ideas or stories?

That’s such an interesting question. I don’t remember reading any children’s books set on Guernsey but growing on the island I often felt a sense of freedom and adventure and wildness when exploring the beaches and forts with friends and without any pesky grown-ups that was a bit like some Eva Ibbotson books I read when I was a child. I would love to write a book set on Guernsey one day in the future. It’s such a beautiful place with a rich folklore and history, from fairies and ghosts to pirates and shipwrecks. 

5. Do you have a favourite illustrator?

The first book I was obsessed with was My Naughty Little Sister by Dorothy Edwards and illustrated by Shirley Hughes. As a very naughty younger sister myself I really related! And it made me think that becoming an author was the very best thing you could do. So my favourite illustrator is Shirley Hughes. 

6. You love eating ice cream; what are your favourite flavours and which characters in your books would also love these flavours?

Chocolate with chocolate chips and chocolate sauce and a chocolate flake. With chocolate sprinkles. I think that this would also be Gerty’s favourite flavour (from The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody) as she has a real sweet tooth and would never consider so much chocolate ‘too much’. 

7. In the first book, people were travelling back in time to meet famous people. Who would you travel back in time to meet and why? 

I change my mind about this question all the time but at the moment I would really love to go back in time to meet Fatima al’Fihri because she is credited with founding the very first university in the world back in 859 and yet there’s loads we don’t know about her life.

8. What is the strangest question a reader/editor has ever asked you? Can you remember what your reply was? 

I was asked by a kid whether I’d write a story about my own skeleton. I said I would definitely consider it!

The Best Children's Book Picks UK - August 2022 - Picked by Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

David Owen - Alex Neptune, Dragon Thief: Book 1 - Published by Usborne Publishing (4 Aug. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1474999236 - Paperback - Age: 8+ - You can buy Here

Meet Alex Neptune, the boy with the power of the ocean in his hands - a brand-new hero for fans of Percy Jackson and Dragon Realm!

For as long as Alex Neptune can remember, the ocean has been trying to kill him. So he's not too happy when a bunch of sea creatures drag him to the abandoned aquarium on the hill, where an imprisoned water dragon needs his help. But how can he say no to a magical creature? 

Recruiting his tech-genius best friend Zoe, legend-lover Anil, a sharp-shooting octopus, three acrobatic otters and a thieving seagull, Alex plots a heist to break the dragon out. And suddenly discovers the power of the ocean at his fingertips...

A. F. Harrold (Author), Levi Pinfold (Illustrator) - The Worlds We Leave Behind - Published by Bloomsbury Children's Books (4 Aug. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1526623881 - Hardback - Age: 11+ You can buy HERE

An extraordinary story about friendship and betrayal. Of revenge and retribution but also redemption. Perfect for 11+ readers who enjoy Stranger Things. 

Hex never meant for the girl to follow him and his friend Tommo into the woods. He never meant for her to fall off the rope swing and break her arm. When the finger of blame is pointed at him, Hex runs deep into the woods and his fierce sense of injustice leads him to a strange clearing in the woods - a clearing that has never been there before - where an old lady in a cottage offers him a deal. She'll rid the world of those who wronged him and Hex can carry on his life with them all forgotten and as if nothing ever happened. But what Hex doesn't know is someone else has been offered the same deal.

When Hex's best friend Tommo wakes up the next day, he is in a completely different world but he only has murmurs of memories of the world before. Moments of deja vu that feel like Tommo's lived this day before. 
Can Tommo put the world right again? Back to how it was? Or can he find a way to make a new world that could be better for them all?

Simon Fox - Running out of Time - Published by Nosy Crow Ltd (4 Aug. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1839944390 - Paperback - Age: 8+ - You can buy HERE

A thrilling, unputdownable debut, with extraordinary twists and incredible action, from an incredible new voice in children's fiction.

I can steal time.

The most I can take at the moment is fifteen seconds, which is not a lot. Grandmother took almost three minutes once and she told me she's done more, but I never saw it.

She says there are stories of someone who can take all the time in the world, but how can that be right?

When Alex and his father are forced to flee their home to escape a brutal government, they begin a life-threatening journey across Europe. But when they are separated before they can reach Britain, Alex finds himself alone, with only his extraordinary gift to keep him alive.

Perfect for fans of Alex Rider, Artemis Fowl, and Inception, <I>Running out of Time</I> is an ingenious, high-concept thriller with a twist that you won't believe.

Susie Bower - The Dangerous Life of Ophelia Bottom - Published by Pushkin Children's Books (4 Aug. 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1782693604 - Paperback - Age: 10+ You can buy HERE

A refreshingly comic and fast-paced mystery about a girl learning the value of not fitting in, from the acclaimed author of School for Nobodies and The Three Impossibles

Ophelia Bottom longs for an ordinary life: to have normal, well-behaved parents rather than embarrassing actors, and to live in a house that stays still. Instead, she’s stuck living in a rickety converted van – and having to manage her parents’ often disastrous plays at Bottom’s Travelling Theatre.

When the family are forced to stay in the idyllic town of Stopford, Ophelia’s dream appears to be coming true. But someone is trying to drive the Bottoms out, and there’s the issue of the strange Stopford motto: PLASTIC IS FANTASTIC – DIFFERENT IS DANGEROUS. Can Ophelia discover what lurks behind Stopford’s perfect appearance, before she loses everything that makes her family so special?

Loris Owen - The Myriad Mysteries of Eartha Quicksmith (BK2) - Book Review - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

Hello everybody - we hope you are managing to keep cool this week! One of our favourite books of July 2022 has to be the epic and thrilling second book in the QUICKSMITH series by Loris Owen. The book has been published by Firefly Press Ltd and has a cracking book cover image. I think this is by Anne Glenn but unfortunately, I cannot find any information in the book to back this up. 

New readers might not instantly realise that this is the follow-up book to The Ten Riddles of Earth Quicksmith. It's not essential that you start at the beginning of the series as it is possible to read this as a standalone story. However, I would personally recommend reading the series in sequence as the back history is such an important aspect of the book to understand the complexity of the plot. It will certainly help you to understand more within the second book. 

Currently, there are so many books being published that the choice is vast and somewhat challenging in being able to find a great read. However, this author (Loris Owen) has a fantastic vision of the world she has created; it's magical and easily grips the reader by transporting you to the world of fantasy and mayhem.  The storyline is like no other book. It's a quest full of well-imagined sequences and ideas that are told with so much depth and detail. The plot allows you to explore with the characters as you follow the clues and decipher new riddles to solve the mystery as well as defeat old enemies. 

It's a fast-paced full of action-adventure with some rather big surprises along the way. The storyline stretches the imagination like an elastic band propelling the reader on a great fantasy ride full of fun and enjoyment. It's a really great sequel that takes you further into a creative world of discovery that is unlike any book I have read for some time. Packed with inventions, teamwork, and gadgets that will have you scratching your head, it's time to travel the Myriad waves and find where the CRAZY PAVING might be. 

Be BOLD and be brave as you travel through space and time with Kip and his friends to a strange world. The places are so bizarre, with creatures and technology so unfathomable, that you might JUST need a helping of sideways thinking. The book is layered with a strange energy that will set your teeth tingling and your toes tapping as you evade capture by the Myriad Pirates. The secrets of the Ark hold the key but a freak accident will just nicely set you up for a quest that will have you wanting more. If this sounds like your type of book strap yourself in, come and DREAM BIG for the time of your life with our recommended book of the month. You can buy HERE. 

The Best Children's Book Picks UK - July 2022 - Picked by Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Carrie Hope Fletcher (Author), Davide Ortu (Illustrator) - The Double Trouble Society - Published by Puffin (7 July 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241558904 - Hardback - Age: 8+

What do you get if you mix together two best friends, a witch's curse and a haunted house? A spell-binding mystery from acclaimed performer and bestselling author Carrie Hope Fletcher - star of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cinderella.

They say children who are born on Friday 13th are immune to evil spirits. Whilst Ivy and Maggie liked to believe that was true, it didn't stop them checking for monsters under their bed each and every night.

Ivy and Maggie have been best friends ever since they were born at exactly the same minute twelve years earlier. They're always on the look-out for a new adventure but unfortunately Crowood Peak is officially the most boring town in the world. Or at least it was until children start to mysteriously disappear and, even stranger, none of the grown-ups seem to have noticed . . .

It's up to the Double Trouble Society to work out what's going on. All the evidence points to the old mansion next door with strange green lights in the windows and a new owner who looks suspiciously like a witch! 

Can Ivy and Maggie solve the mystery of Hokum House and rescue their friends or will they be next on the witch's list of victims?

P.J. Canning - 21% Monster - Published by Usborne Publishing Ltd (7 July 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1474984416 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

Fun, fast-paced, high-octane action-adventure, 21% Monster is a perfect page-turning new series for fans of Alex Rider, Percy Jackson and the MCU generation.
When Darren Devlin is arrested for destroying his school with his bare hands, it's not just the police who are after him. Enter Marek Masters, 14 years old, 19% alien, and the most intelligent, most wanted "almost human" alive. Marek is here to tell Darren the truth - he is 21% monster, and together they must take down the secret organisation that created them.

Darren and Marek are wanted, powerful and dangerous. And now it's payback time.

Helenka Stachera (Author), Marco Guadalupi (Illustrated) - Finn and the Memory Curse - Published by Puffin (21 July 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241491331 - Paperback - Age: 8+ 

A chilling Victorian London adventure about one girl's mission to break a centuries-old curse with her long-lost family at its heart - perfect for fans of Cogheart and The Castle of Tangled Magic.

Fin is a foundling growing up in the Hackney marshes, living in a tiny attic and selling leeches for a living. When she accidentally discovers she is the long-lost child of a rich Polish family called the Kaminskis, she is swept up into a supernatural adventure where she has to use everything she has learned on the streets of London and deep in the marshes to stay alive.

For the Kaminskis are haunted by an ancient evil - and Fin is the key to stopping it forever . . .

David Solomons - Published by - Nosy Crow Ltd (7 July 2022) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0857639936 - Paperback - Age: 7+ (Here is Our Interview)

A brilliantly funny story of what happens when a galactic princess moves in next door and almost brings about the end of the world. Exciting new fiction from the bestselling, award-winning author of My Brother is a Superhero.

Gavin's got a new neighbour and she's really annoying. Niki follows him everywhere, bosses him about, and doesn't care that her parents will obliterate Earth with their galactic warships if she doesn't stop running away from them. Can Niki and Gavin sort out the alien despots (aka Mum and Dad) and save the planet? Possibly. Will they become friends along the way? Doubtful...

'David Solomons represents the best in contemporary comic writing for children' -- Guardian

A hilarious new story from the author of My Brother Is a Superhero, winner of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and the British Book Industry Awards Children's Book of the Year.